


Fuck me, Jensen!

by saltandpepur



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Angst, Dancing, Fluff, Hannah obviously, Hurt/Comfort, I know nothing about american highschools, I know shit about the varsity jacket bullshit I wrote, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Jeff Atkins is alive, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, No one likes Bryce, Sharing Clothes, The night of the party is the same except Jeff didn't die, car crashes, letterman jackets, varsity jackets, winter formal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2019-11-05 16:52:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17922668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saltandpepur/pseuds/saltandpepur
Summary: Jeff Atkins. Baseball prodigy, all-star athlete and an all around nice guy.Clay Jensen. Terrible at sport but a great tutor and a straight A student.There was a moment of comfortable silence before Jeff tapped his hand on the table in order to get Clay's attention from where he had been sorting out the papers in front of him. "Want to go to Rosie's to celebrate?" He asked.Clay grinned. "Sure."





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is chaptered. Some of the tags won't come into play until later. I know jack shit about a lot of stuff. Let me know if there's any background relationships you'd like to see. I love getting comments, so don't be scared to drop one!
> 
> Jeff Atkins deserved better :(

The library was quiet and fairly empty as Clay Jensen and Jeff Atkins sat one Thursday afternoon. A few other students milled around doing homework or trying to sneak a spot in the stacks to do...unsavoury activities. Tony sat alone on the next table, subtly listening in as he stared at an open textbook and a partially blank notebook page. Skye lurked nearby at the second closest table, a few books stacked next to her. Every now and then she would shoot dark glances at students who passed her, and she deemed unworthy of a smile.

"Jeff, this is...amazing," Clay said in awe as he read over Jeff's latest essay. Jeff sat smugly before him and grinned. "Genuinely, this is the best paper you've ever written," Clay continued. "No grammar mistakes, great vocab..."

"I even used a semi-colon," Jeff pointed out. He leaned over and rested his elbows on the table. His smile faded momentarily as he looked Clay in the eyes. "You're sure it's okay?"

Clay nodded and patted Jeff's bare forearm. "I'm sure."

Jeff exhaled and smiled dazzlingly at Clay and Clay felt his heartbeat stutter momentarily.

"If this gets my grade up to a B, I'm officially allowed to play baseball again." Jeff grinned at Clay from across the table. He held his hand up for a high-five and Clay tapped their hands together. He felt Tony's gaze lift from the table to them both and shifted self-consciously.

"It totally will."

There was a moment of comfortable silence before Jeff tapped his hand on the table in order to get Clay's attention from where he had been sorting out the papers in front of him. "Want to go to Rosie's to celebrate?" He asked.

Clay grinned. "Sure." He handed back a selection of papers to Jeff and threw the others rather unceremoniously into his bag. Jeff slipped his into a clear plastic folder before sliding them in his bad and swinging it over his shoulder. He stood and waited as Clay picked up his bag and tapped his pockets for his phone and keys. 

"Ready to go?" Jeff asked. Clay nodded and they left the library together, headed to the parking lot.

As they made it outside the cool air hit Clay's face and he stopped short for a moment as simultaneously a realisation also hit him. "Hey, Jeff. Did you drive here?" He asked.

Jeff shot him a confused look and nodded. Clay bit his lip and thought for a moment. "I rode my bike here. What are we gonna do?"

Jeff stopped and stood next to him for a moment. "We could drive there and come back for your bike? It is locked up?" He proposed.

Clay thought on it and nodded. "Okay."

-

Jeff's car was really nice. Clay didn't know much about cars but even he could appreciate that it was a nice car. "Your car is really nice," he told Jeff as they climbed in and shut the doors. Jeff inserted the key into the ignition and turned to smile at Clay.

"Don't be letting Tony hear you say that, he might get jealous."

Clay laughed. "Tony treats his car like it's his child."

Jeff reversed out of the parking space and began to drive. Various groups of teenagers were spending their afternoon doing god-knows-what in the streets. Clay spotted Monty and Bryce milling next to a 7/11 looking rather shifty. He adverted his gaze. Knowing too much about what they were up to seemed like a death sentence. They sat in pleasant silence as the radio blared some popular music on a moderate volume. Jeff pulled into the parking lot of Rosie's diner within a few minutes and stopped the car.

"Come on," He said to Clay as he jumped out the car and waited for Clay to do the same.

Rosie's was quite full, Clay noticed as they pushed open the doors and scanned the room for a booth. Jeff pulled him by the arm and snagged a booth right in the corner of the room. The upside: It was clean and comfy, and it wasn't one of the booths with an overgrown plant interrupting your lunch. The downside: It was right next to a broken window that was letting in a breeze. Clay felt the wind through the sleeves of his thin shirt and shivered slightly. He thought he was subtle but evidently not as Jeff sent him a concerned look.

"Clay?" He questioned. "You alright?" 

"Uh, yeah," Clay replied. "It just a little cold by here." He sent him a tight smile. Jeff looked unsure and studied him for a few moments before he moved his arms and shrugged it off. 'A bit odd, but maybe he's not cold,' Clay thought. Jeff then passed the jacket across the table to Clay. Clay stared at him for a few moments, jacket in hand.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Fuck me, Jensen. Put it on."

"Are you sure? Won't you be cold?" He asked him.

" _Yes_ , I'm sure. And no, I'll be fine." Jeff raised an eyebrow and stared Clay down until he slipped the jacket on. Jeff tilted his head as he examined him.

"What?" Clay pulled the sleeved over his hands and looked at Jeff. "What?!"

"Nothing, nothing." Jeff smiled at Clay. It was odd, seeing Clay in a varsity jacket but...it kinda suited him. The blue and white muted tones complimented his dark hair and pale skin really well, and the slight too-big size made him look...cute.

"Does it look stupid?" Clay asked, worried.

Jeff shook his head. "It suits you. You look good."

Clay opened his mouth to reply but was in interrupted by a server coming over to ask for their orders. 

"Vanilla milkshake, please," Jeff said.

"Uh, same for me, please." 

The server left with their orders scribbled down and Clay and Jeff returned their attention to each other. "So," Jeff began. "You going to the winter formal?" 

Clay grimaced slightly. Dances were so not his scene; he hated being lonely. "Probably not. Not really my thing," he explained. He thought he saw Jeff's smile fall but it was back in place immediately and Clay wasn't sure he hadn't imagined it. 

"Well, why not?" Jeff asked. He smiled at their server who dropped off their drinks and took a sip of his milkshake.

Clay reached out for his and drank it while formulating his response. "I've got no one to go with. I'd just be alone." He drank more of his milkshake to make himself stop talking, else he'd be spilling all his greatest insecurities to _Jeff Atkins_ , of all people, right in the middle of Rosie's diner.

Jeff pursed his lips and then frowned at Clay. "You wouldn't be alone, I'd be there. And Tony," he said. He'd noticed that Clay kept to himself, but he'd just assumed his other friends were elsewhere. But no. It seemed he was more alone than Jeff had first realised. 

"I wouldn't want to intrude on your time with your friends. And Tony does DJ, it's not the same." Clay sighed.

Jeff looked at him oddly. "Clay...we're friends too. You know that, right?" He looked at Clay, concerned.

"Yeah, but I... well, you have _better_ friends. You know?" Clay replied.

"That settles it. Let's go together." Jeff said.

Clay startled. "What?"

"I said, let go together. To the dance." Jeff clarified. He watched Clay consider it, probably listing the pros and cons in his head as they spoke.

"I - you're sure?" Clay asked.

Jeff just rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, sure, why not," Clay replied.

"Hell yeah, Jensen!" Jeff exclaimed, high-fiving him.

Clay smiled and took another sip of his milkshake. Maybe this time he could finally enjoy a dance...

He and Jeff had just fallen into a companionable silence when he door to Rosie's opened again and raucous laughter filtered in from outside. Clay turned and saw Bryce and co. spill in through the small door. 

"Hey, Jeff!" Monty called over. Jeff simply raised a hand to him.

Bryce sauntered over as they made their way to a booth. "Didn't know you guys were going steady," he joked.

Jeff simply smiled a tight smile until they had all passed, taking their laughter and loud, obnoxious voices with them.

"Going steady?" Clay asked with a raised eyebrow.

Jeff laughed softly. "It was like a thing, girls used to wear their boyfriend's varsity jackets to show that they were 'going steady'. It's all very traditional." He finished off the last of his milkshake and set the glass down.

Clay followed suit and flushed a little at the implication that he was Jeff's boyfriend. Despite it being an old tradition, he still felt...well, he didn't know what he felt. He finished off his partially melted milkshake and set the glass down beside Jeff's.

"So..." Jeff said. "Shall we go pick up your bike?"

Clay nodded. "Yeah, yeah sure. Let's go."

-

Clay lead Jeff to where his bike was locked up, unsure as to why he was following but happy to continue spending time with him, nonetheless. "Well, uh, guess I'll see you around?"

Jeff nodded and clapped Clay on the back. "Ride safely. Don't fall."

Clay grinned and pushed away, cycling off into the parking lot and to home.

Jeff watched him go and walked back to his car, not even realising that he didn't have his jacket.

-

"Hey, Mom," Jeff called as he got in.

"Hey, honey. How was tutoring?" She asked from where she was arranging books on a bookshelf. 

"Good, good," he said. He grabbed an apple as he passed through the front room.

"Oh, honey?" His mom called before he left. "Where's your jacket? You didn't go out without one, did you? It's awfully cold."

"No, mom," Jeff reassured her. "I let a friend borrow it." He climbed the stairs to his room, smiling. Clay suited his jacket.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We get some Tony and Clay bonding in this chapter and the invitation of a maybe-date. Let me know your thoughts and if you want to see anything specific in future chapters (spoiler alert: it's not all planned out already)

Clay was just locking his bike up when he felt a hand tap his shoulder and heard Tony speak from behind him. “How long until you get a car?”

Clay rolled his eyes and turned to face Tony. “There is nothing wrong with my bike,” he complained as they made their way up the stairs and into the hallways of Liberty High. Clay noticed the jocks standing by some lockers and instinctively ducked his head to hurry past. As he passed, he saw Jeff standing off to the edge, near Zach, and smiled at him. Jeff raised his hand and sent him a grin.

“Alright, Jensen?” He asked as they passed. He was wearing one of his signature grey, ¾ length sleeved tops. Without his jacket Clay felt his mouth dry slightly as his partially covered arms caught his eyes. He forced himself to look up to Jeff’s eyes. Beside him, Tony raised an eyebrow and stood silently.

“Hey, Jeff. Yeah, I’m cool, you?” He felt awkward standing near the jocks and clutched his bag tighter. Oh – and that reminded him. “Actually – I brought your jacket. Sorry, I was home before I realised, I forgot to give it back,” Clay said sheepishly as he pulled a folded black-and-white varsity jacket from his bag. Jeff took it with a smile and slipped it on, covering his arms. Clay wasn’t sure if he was relieved or disappointed about that.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t notice until I was home either. Hey – see you later?” He asked as Tony tapped Clay’s arm impatiently, wanting to go.

“Yeah, of course. See you.” Clay left with Tony in tow and made it to his locker. Tony leaned against he one next to it and smirked at Clay.

“So…Jeff?” Tony said, suggestively.

“What about Jeff?” Clay asked as he fished a textbook out of his locker and stuffed into his bag. He eyed Tony nervously as he smirked.

“Clay, you are not subtle in the _slightest_ ,” Tony replied.

Clay shut is locker and leaned his forehead against it, exhaling harshly. “Look, can we not do this now?”

Tony watched Clay for a minute and then risked a look behind him to where the jocks were still loitering. He guessed he saw Clay’s point – they were too close. “Fine, but we are so having this discussion elsewhere.”

With that, Tony and Clay separated to their classes. Clay left, oblivious to Jeff’s lingering gaze following him down the hallway.

-

“So…I got my B!” Jeff exclaimed as soon as Clay sat down beside him in the library. Clay sat down heavily and opened his bag to retrieve his lunch.

“That’s amazing! I mean, I knew you would, anyway,” he said. He pulled out an apple and bit into it. From across the table, Jeff pulled out a tangerine and began to peel it.

“Thank you, for helping me,” Jeff said. He made his way through half the tangerine and Clay polished off most of his apple before Jeff opened his mouth again to speak.

At that exact moment, Clay’s phone – which was face up on the table – buzzed loudly. Clay jumped choked on his last bite of apple. Jeff reached over the table to slap his back and for split-second he saw a glimpse of Jeff’s tanned skin from beneath his top.

A hard slap sent the apple chunk down Clay’s throat and he took a deep breath of air. Jeff sat back down and glanced at Clay’s phone just before the screen dimmed.

_Tony: Monet’s after school? I’ll pick you up after sixth.”_

Clay settled back down and grabbed his phone to reply.

_Clay: Sure. Meet you out front.”_

“Hot date?” Jeff smiled at Clay from his side of the table. He twirled a pen (and where had he produced that from?) around with his fingers.

Clay scoffed and put the phone down on the table. “Nope. Just Tony.” He sighed and cracked his knuckles. He was not ready to be having that conversation with him.

“Does Tony not classify as a hot date? He’s got that handsome, scary look to him.” Jeff said.

Clay just blinked for a moment. Did he hear that right? “I would rather not think of my best friend like that. Besides, I wouldn’t call him interrogating me as…a date…” He trailed off.

Jeff was looking very interested, elbows up on the desk and face alight. “Oh?”

“I – shit,” Clay said. How had he left that slip?

“What’s he interrogating you about?” Jeff asked. His face lit up like a child who had been promised candy. “Is it about your love life?”

“What love life?” Clay mumbled. Then he blanched: he didn’t mean for it to come out as sadly as it did. He looked up and saw Jeff’s smile fade slightly.

“Hey, you don’t have to tell me. No pressure.” Jeff made sure to catch Clay’s eyes and gave him a reassuring smile.

Fuck it, Clay thought. “I think I’m gay.”

Jeff’s smile morphed into a look of momentary surprise before it shifted back into a soft smile. “Hey, thanks for telling me, man.” Their gazes locked for a moment until Clay tentatively smiled back.

“I’m just concerned, I guess. I mean some of the shit I’ve seen Ryan and Tony go through…” Clay ducked his head and scrunched his eyes shut tight. He heard the push of a chair against carpet and then a few seconds later felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and was Jeff, now sitting beside him, with a band on his shoulder. He looked sad.

“I get you. I’ve never told anyone but…I’m bi.” Jeff lowered his voice to share his confession. “I can’t even imagine the reaction I’d get from some of the team.”

Clay nodded and they sat like that, Jeff’s hand on Clay’s shoulder, for a few minutes until the sharp ringing of a bell pierced through the quiet library. Clay sighed and stood, Jeff following suit. “See you around?”

“See you around,” Jeff replied.

-

“Get in,” Tony said as soon as he pulled up beside Clay. Clay stood blankly for a moment until Tony gestured with his hands and he climbed in the car.

“So,” Tony began, attempting to look innocent (and failing miserably).

Clay groaned and looked out of the window to avoid glancing at hoe Tony’s hands were dancing on the steering wheel. “I thought we were having this conversation _at Monet’s_?”

Tony snorted and there was a moment of silence as they passed through the town’s school-end traffic. Clay saw groups of friends walking home on the sidewalk and smiled sadly.

After a few moments, Tony spoke up. “I’m not pressuring you, Clay. I know what it’s like to come to terms with being gay or…whatever.” He waved a dismissive hand. “Anyway, we can go to Monet’s and just talk, if you want. No pressure.”

There was another comfortable silence for some time and Clay smiled to himself. “You know what? I should talk about it. I want to. With you.”

Tony turned his head from the road for a short moment and smiled at Clay. “Let’s get ready then.”

-

Clay startled into real life when Tony placed two mugs down at the table and sat down in front of him. “Thanks,” he said, pulling his mug towards him and cradling it in his hands until it cooled down enough to take a sip.

“So,” Tony began. “ _Jeff Atkins_.”

Clay smiled softly. “Yeah. _Jeff Atkins_.”

“Opposites attract?” Tony joked as he took a sip of his black coffee. “There certainly seems to be some differences there.”

“Yeah…but it’s okay with us, you know? It works.” Clay took a sip of his drink and immediately scrunched his face up at the scalding heat on his tongue. Tony laughed and Clay placed the mug down, disgruntled.

“Yeah…” Tony nodded his head. “How long?”

Clay paused for a moment to think and Tony watched him. He seemed so happy and relaxed. Carefree, almost. It was refreshing, to see him excited and not stressed.

“I don’t know. I guess it’s just built up as I started tutoring him.” Clay tapped his fingers on the table and his smile slipped. “I-“

“Clay?” Tony asked, concerned.

“It’s just…” He trailed off. “It’s _Jeff Atkins_. There is no goddamn way in hell that he will like me back.”

Clay and Tony sat in silence for a few minutes. The hustle and bustle of people around them filled the sad yet comfortable silence.

“You don’t know that.”

Clay looked up at Tony. “I mean…I don’t _know_ , sure. But should I hope? What if I just ruin everything?”

“Look,” Tony began seriously, leaning closer to Clay. “I know what it’s like to take a chance, unsure of how it’ll come out. Even if he doesn’t like you back, Jeff’s a good guy. Nothing will change. And you can move on.” He took a gulp of his drink. “ _Or_ , alternatively, he likes you back. Don’t you want to take that shot?”

Clay stared at Tony, thinking. “I don’t know. I need more time, I think. I’m still new to…figuring out everything, I guess.”

Tony nodded. “Of course. But just some advice: don’t overthink it. Your sexuality? It’s not a big deal, okay. You don’t have to fit into a box, if you don’t want to.”

“I know. Thanks, Tony.”

Clay held up his mug to take a sip of his drink when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He placed his mug down without even taking a sip.

 _Jeff: hey, the crestmont is showing some crime thriller film tonight_  
_Jeff: it looks really good_  
_Jeff: so, what i’m saying is do u wanna see it with me?_  
_Jeff: tonight, 7?_

Clay stared at his phone until Tony pulled it out of his hands and read the texts. His eyebrows immediately shot up.

“Well, well. Someone’s scored themselves a date.”

Clay swiped his phone back, cheeks beginning to turn crimson. “It’s not…a date.” He tapped a reply out, still blushing. Tony laughed next to him, mumbling about how “it’s definitely a date” and “you’re so oblivious, Clay”.

Clay: Yeah sure. Meet you there.

“At least add a heart,” Tony said.

Clay pocketed his phone and rolled his eyes at Tony. “Like you’ve ever sent a heart in a text in your life.”

“Just because _I_ haven’t doesn’t mean _you_ can’t.”

Clay sent him a withering look.

Tony seemed unaffected. “You’d better look pretty for your date with Jeff.”

“It’s not a date!”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The movie date does not go quite to plan. A slightly longer chapter than the last two, don't forget to let me know what you think! :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Electric Century are a real band and you should definitely check them out, the bassist is Mikey Way who used to be in MCR.
> 
> The film they saw, Where the Missing Go, doesn't exist, but the book does. Where the Missing Go is by Emma Rowley and I highly recommend it.

Clay stood in front of his wardrobe at 6:30 with his drying hair stuck to his forehead and a pained expression plastered on his face. He felt blindly on his desk for his phone and pulled open his and Tony’s message conversations. There was no way he’d ever let him live down what he was about to do.

_Clay: Tony  
Clay: Say, theoretically, I wanted to look good for tonight  
Clay: What would I wear? _

He threw his phone down and collapsed on his bed. Ever since Jeff had first texted to ask about the movie, he had been jittery and nervous. _It’s fine_ he thought to himself. _It’s just Jeff._

He heard the phone buzz and dived for it, immediately opening the message conversation.

_Tony: Hypothetically, huh?  
Tony: Wear the blue jeans with the rip in the pocket and your leather jacket with the hood  
Tony: Good luck on your date  
Clay: Not a date. Thanks 😊_

Clay locked the phone and began to swipe through his wardrobe in search for the aforementioned items. He found the jeans on the closet floor and pulled them on, hopping like a manic as his foot got caught. He pulled a clean t-shirt over his head and sat down to pull on (odd) socks. Crush or not, no one was making him find a pair of socks. Besides, they had a charm. 

Impatient and edgy, Clay began to pace around his room. Sue him, he was nervous. Internally, Clay knew that Jeff probably wouldn’t even care what he showed up in, but the small part of his brain that he had affectionately dubbed the “fucking logic-less section” highly disagreed. A buzz from is phone (that had somehow ended up screen down on the floor) was what broke Clay out of his thoughts. He gingerly lifted it, wincing at the thought of a broken screen, and flipped it over. After a thorough examination the screen seemed fine, a small chip on the phone case being the only present damage. He turned the screen on.

_Jeff: just saying hi  
Jeff: i’m leaving in a few  
Clay: Same  
Clay: Drive safe  
Jeff: u 2 <3 _

Clay’s heart stuttered and he started at the screen, wide-eyed. A heart. Jeff had sent him a heart. Granted, it was a little text heart and not an emoji, but they meant the same, surely? Vaguely, he let his gaze wander to the clock and almost dropped his phone when he realised it was 6:42. It was beyond time to go.

_

Clay mounted his bike and pushed off, swerving his way around cars that looked as though they’d dropped from heaven. The evening breeze felt good on his exposed skin and the rapidly darkening sky meant that street lights illuminated the streets. Shadowed figures strolled along the greenery-lined sidewalks and the watercolour sky splashed with dark blue. Cars drove by fast, over the speed limit and with no care. Clay dodged a particularly careless Fiat driver and wobbled slightly. He made a sharp turn at an intersection, minutes away from the Crestmont.

Crash!

One-minute Clay was riding, the next minute a sharp pain shot through his wrist and a damp feeling spread across his forehead. The rough feeling of concrete on his skin made him blink his eyes open from where he’d screwed them shut upon impact. When he opened his eyes, the dim road was deserted. Whoever had hit him decided that they didn’t want to deal with the consequences and had left, leaving him in the middle of the road. 

Hissing, he got up and wheeled his bike towards the Crestmont. His body felt sore and his wrist was screaming. Awkwardly and with one hand Clay locked his bike up and made his way through the double doors. He could see Jeff milling around and waved with his good hand. Jeff spotted him and his face split into a grin, causing Clay’s heart to melt. He was in one of his signature ¾ length sleeve shirts and a leather jacket replaced the usual varsity number. He began to walk over, and a glint of overhead light shone on his earrings. 

But as he got closer, the grin faded. He rushed to Clay and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Clay?” He asked. “What the hell happened?” Gingerly, as to not disturb it more, Jeff picked up Clay’s wrist and examined it.

“Someone knocked me off my bike,” Clay replied, trying not to wince. His wrist was beginning to numb now, slight purple bruises forming already.

Jeff looked positively murderous and Clay rushed to placate him. “Hey, I’m fine,” he tried to sooth.

Jeff shook his head brought his attention upwards and studied Clay’s face. “Clay…you’re bleeding.”

Surprised, Clay brought his hand to his forehead only for it to return slick with sticky, slowly-browning blood. “Oh…”

Jeff met eyes with him. “Look, if you insist you’re fine, can I at least bring you to mine after the film? My mom is a nurse.” He looked sincere, and worried.

Clay sighed and nodded. “But what about my bike?” He couldn’t leave it there. Unlike him, it had come out of the incident relatively unscathed. 

“Could you ask Tony?” Jeff wondered. Clay shrugged and fished his phone out of his pocket. In dismay, he noticed a long crack run down a third of the screen. He huffed in annoyance and squinted at the bright screen, struggling to find his contacts to call Tony. 

Jeff gently plucked the phone from his hands and began to scroll through his contacts, pressing Tony’s name and letting it ring on speaker.

“Clay?” Tony answered after a few moments, evidently confused. “I thought your film started at 7, is everything okay?”

These was a moment of silence where Clay didn’t speak and looked hopelessly at Jeff, who smirked and took over. “Hi Tony, it’s Jeff. Clay was hit by a car.”

“He was fucking what?” Tony spat from the other end.

“Yeah, some asshole knocked him off his bike. Is there any chance you could pick it up from the Crestmont? It doesn’t fit in my car and Clay is in no state to ride,” Jeff explained. 

Like a petulant child, Clay tried to chip in, “I’m fine really- “

“He is not.” Jeff raised a pointed eyebrow and Clay, and then his wrist, and Clay shut up.

The line crackled for a few moments and Tony spoke again. “I’m on my way now. Don’t worry Clay, I have a key for the lock.”

Clay blinked. “You do?” 

Jeff laughed. “Thanks Tony. It’s appreciated.”

“No problem. Now go enjoy your film. Oh, and Jeff? Take care of him.” Tony hung up after that and Jeff handed the phone back to Clay, who was dying inside from embarrassment.

“Shall we go?” Jeff asked. He pulled a bag of Malteasers from an inside pocket of his jacket. “I have snacks.”

Clay eyes the packet and laughed. “They’re already open.”

Jeff cackled and just took Clay by his good arm and dragged them towards the ticket booth, where Hannah was stood.

“Hey, Hannah,” Clay mumbled.

“Clay! What happened to you?” She asked, eyebrows furrowed.

“Bike incident,” Jeff offered. “Uh, two tickets to ‘Where the Missing Go’, please.

Hannah nodded and printed them, taking Jeff’s money and handing over the change. “Have fun on your _date_ ,” she smirked at Clay.

Clay glared at her and dragged his finger across his throat from behind Jeff’s back. Hannah raised an eyebrow in response but handed the tickets over. Jeff seemed unconcerned with everything, simply taking the tickets and smiling at Hannah before pulling Clay away by the arm again.

Clay was going to murder Hannah.

-

The film had already begun as they sat down, and Clay leaned into Jeff to whisper in his ear. “So, what’s this about?”

Jeff leaned into Clay to reply, so close that Clay could feel the warmth of his breath on his cheek. “A girl goes missing and rings into the hotline for runaway children her mom works at, I think that’s about to happen.”

They sat in peaceful silence as the movie played out, the mother stumbling over more and more clues to the whereabouts of his daughter. As the film drew more and more into its conclusion, Clay and Jeff drew closer and closer, almost on the edge of their seats. Clay couldn’t help but surreptitiously glance at Jeff as the film calmed down and he knew he wouldn’t miss much. 

His fingers itched to brush against Jeff’s, but he didn’t want to draw too much attention to himself. Carefully, Clay reached for a Malteaser and it was at that point that on-screen, someone was stabbed. Clay jumped shocked by the sudden blood and his hand automatically went to grip the nearest thing to him. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) that was Jeff’s jacket sleeve.

Clay realised it immediately, face burning, but Jeff just turned to him, looking a little concerned. “You okay?” He whispered.

Clay nodded. “It just shocked me,” he whispered back. 

They sat there for a few moments until Clay felt Jeff’s hand touch his. He looked down and saw that Jeff was resting a hand next to his, just touching. Carefully, he moved a little closer and linked their pinkie fingers. Jeff reciprocated.

They sat like that until the end of the film, until the credits were rolling and until they had to detangle to stand and leave the theatre.

“That was so good!” Jeff gushed as they exited the doors, other moviegoers spilling out of the doors behind him.

“It really was,” Clay agreed. “I was not expecting that ending!”

“Oh, when she stabbed him…” Jeff mimed a fist pump. “Hell yeah!”

Clay laughed and followed Jeff outside to where his car was parked at the edge of the road. “Am I still coming with you?” He asked.

“Yes,” Jeff replied, opening the door for him and then moving over to the driver’s side. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about earlier.”

Clay conceded and got in the car, closing the door behind him. “I really do love this car.”

Jeff laughed aloud and started the car. “You said that last time.” He adjusted the radio until some electronica/indie-sounding band began to play from the speakers. 

“Who’s playing?” Clay asked.

“Electric Century,” Jeff replied, blindly reaching by his side and producing the CD case, handing it over to Clay.

The case was pretty simple, a woman seemingly suspended in mid-air. “What kind of music?” Clay asked as he read the back for the song names.

“Wikipedia says ‘indie slash alternative’”, Jeff quoted as he began to pull up at a house. “The bassist used to be in a rock-emo band.” He shut the car off and the music ended abruptly. “Alright, here we are.”

Clay set the CD case on his seat and unbuckled his seatbelt. Jeff’s house was illuminated by a couple of sensory lights that had turned on as they arrived. The living room light was on and Clay could see a woman’s figure wandering around, and a man’s sitting on the couch.

Jeff unlocked the door and pushed it open, gesturing for Clay to follow him. “Hey Mom, Dad,” he said as he shut the door behind Clay and walked into the room. 

Clay followed like a scared puppy dog and smiled awkwardly at Jeff’s mom.

“Hi, sweetie. Is this Clay?” She stepped closer and frowned at his head. “What happened?”

Jeff scowled. “A car knocked him off his bike. I was hoping you could look at his head and wrist?”

Jeff’s mom guided Clay by the shoulder and onto the couch where she gently pushed him down to sit. Clay blinked at her until she left to go fetch the first-aid kit. He awkwardly smiled at Jeff’s dad. The living room was very sparsely decorated and yet simultaneously very homely. There were a lot of earth tones and Clay spotted a family portrait on the wall, obviously taken when Jeff was younger. He turned when he felt a weight beside him on the couch.

“Hey, dad,” Jeff said, sitting beside Clay. “This is Clay.”

“Your tutor?” He asked.

Jeff nodded.

His dad smiled. “It’s thanks to you that our son can play baseball again,” he said happily.

“Well, I mean, Jeff did the work, he worked really hard- “ he stuttered. He spotted Jeff and his dad exchange a glance but couldn’t for the life of him translate it.

“Okay,” Jeff’s mom said, effectively ruining the moment. “I need to check for a concussion, and I need to examine that wrist of yours. Your breathing is okay?” She nudged Jeff out of the way and sat beside Clay.

“Uh – yeah, I can breathe fine.” Clay gulped.

Jeff’s mom nodded and shone a small torch into Clay’s pupils. Whatever she saw must have satisfied her as she put it away shortly after and asked Clay to show his injured wrist.

Clay trolled his sleeve up and bared his arm. The wrist was a mess of mottled bruises and red skin. It was very obviously slightly swollen. He looked up and saw Jeff looking on in mild horror. 

“Can you move it?” Jeff’s mom asked. 

“It hurts when I do,” Clay replied.

“Did you hear a snap?”

“No.”

She felt around the wrist slightly and examined the shape. “It’s probably sprained. I still recommend going to a doctor first thing tomorrow. You don’t seem to have a concussion, but if you begin to have memory loss or sickness, get checked out. Ice on the wrist or a warm bath. I’ll clean the cut on your forehead, but it seems okay. Clean it daily and keep your hair off it.”

Clay nodded. “Thank you,” he said gratefully. “I’ll get my mom to take me tomorrow.”

Jeff’s mom nodded. “Wear a helmet next time you ride.” With that she pulled an antiseptic wipe from the first-aid kit and ripped it open. Clay flinched as it touched the wound but let her clean the wound and the blood from his face. As soon as he was clear she packed away the it and stood up to put it away. The minute she moved Jeff came and sat back down next to him. 

“Did Tony drop your bike off okay?” He asked.

Clay pulled his phone from his pocket and unlocked it. An overwhelming number of notifications filled the screen. “I’m gonna say yes,” he grunted as he scrolled through the missed calls and frantic texts from his Mom. “Here we go.” He clicked ‘call back’.

“Clay?” Lainie said breathlessly. “Oh, thank god. Tony called by with your bike and said you were hit. What were you thinking, not going straight to hospital?”

“Mom, I’m fine,” Clay said. “My wrist is sprained and I don’t have a concussion.”

“How do you know?”

“I’m at Jeff’s house right now, his Mom is a nurse. She checked me over,” he said. Jeff patted him on the knee and mimed a thumbs up at him.

“I’m not happy. We are taking you straight to the doctor tomorrow morning.” She said with finality. “How are you getting home?”

“Um…” Clay looked at Jeff and mouthed the question. 

“I’ll drive you,” Jeff whispered.

“Jeff’s going to drive me home,” he parroted back.

Lainie sighed. “Okay. Be home before 10, no excuses. Love you.”

“Love you too,” Clay said before hanging up the phone. He groaned and buried his head in his hands. “She’s not going to let me out for _weeks_!”

Jeff patted his knee consolingly and stood up, fishing his keys from his pocket. “Come on, Jensen. Let’s get you home before your mom decides to never let you out of her sight again.” He led them to the front door, waving a quick goodbye to his parents. “After you,” he said, holding the door open and allowing Clay to slip through.

Clay flopped down in the seat and shut his eyes to try and quell the thumping headache that had begun to develop. He hard Jeff turn the music on and winced slightly as loud bass hit his ears. Immediately, the music quietened to a bearable volume.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Jeff asked. 

“Yeah,” Clay replied. “Yeah, just got a headache.” He opened his eyes and squinted out of the window at the passing houses. 

They sat in silence until Jeff pulled up outside Clay’s house. Clay could see a shadowed figured at the living room window and it moved to the front door as soon as Jeff got out of the car. They walked up together and Lainie opened the door before they even had a chance to knock.

“Clay!” She said, grabbing him. “Oh my god! How many times do I have to tell you to wear a helmet?”

Jeff smiled at her. “My mom said you should probably get him checked out tomorrow.”

Lainie nodded. “Yes, of course.” She pushed Clay inside and he waved goodbye to Jeff before disappearing further into the house. “Thank you for looking after him,” she said to Jeff.

“It’s no problem, Mrs Jensen. Goodnight.” He turned back to leave.

“Jeff?” Lainie said. “Text Clay when you get home? So we know you’re safe?” 

Jeff nodded and smiled. “Of course.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeff worries too much and skips school to visit Clay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really sorry for the wait, guys. I've been caught up with exams, and then other personal stuff, but it's all good now :) Hope you enjoy, and don't forget to recommend anything you'd like to see! Just drop a comment and I'll try to include it.

Jeff had spent the first few hours of school looking for Clay to no avail. He’d texted Clay to say he was home and had got a “😊” in return, before radio silence. He knew his mom was taking him to the doctor, but he hoped he was back soon.

“Atkins!” A voice called.

Jeff snapped out of it and faced Bryce, who was looking at him in a confused manner. “Yeah?”

“Dude, were you even listening?” Bryce asked. “What’s up with you today?”

Jeff just shook his head and took a bite out of the apple he had in front of him. It had been half a school day and not even a text from Clay to say what was going on…it just felt odd. He continued to ignore Bryce and the team’s chatter and ate his apple slowly until a touch to the arm startled him.

“Jeff,” a voice called from behind him.

Jeff turned to see Tony; his forehead creased slightly in worry. His heart dropped momentarily. “Tony?”

“Lainie texted me. Clay passed out this morning. He’s in hospital.”

Jeff startled. “What?”

The rest of the table had gone silent as they listened in on the conversation. Bryce raised an eyebrow at Monty and ducked his head down to his lunch.

“I’m going to visit now. If you can ditch next two periods, I’ll take you.” Tony jangled his car keys. 

Jeff nodded mutely and gathered his bag from where it lay at his feet, throwing his trash in the bin and waving a vague goodbye to the team before following Tony. They paced through the school quickly, worry consuming them both though they never spoke to confirm. Tony seemed jittery: his hands were constantly moving by his sides and his steps were inconsistent and stuttered. When they reached Tony’s – beautiful – iconic red Mustang, Jeff hopped in the passenger seat, silently marveling at the beauty of the inside. He fished out his phone and shot off a quick text to his mom.

_Jeff: don’t be mad but i went to see clay in the hospital_

After a few moments Tony began to exit the parking lot, and the phone vibrated twice.

_Mom: Jeff Atkins, if you get taken off the team for this we won’t be impressed.  
Mom: Give our love to Clay x _

The journey could not go any faster.

-

Jeff nervously trailed Tony to the reception of the hospital where Matt was waiting, reading a newspaper. Tony patted his shoulder and they spoke quietly for a few moments until Tony jerked his head towards Jeff.

“This is Jeff,” he said. “Jeff, Matt Jensen.”

“Uh, hi,” Jeff said, grinning awkwardly. “Um…is Clay okay?” He bounced nervously on his heels and stuffed his hands in his letterman pockets for lack of things to do.

“They think so. He’s being kept a few more hours for observation but should be allowed out soon. You’re both allowed to come see him, you’re logged already.”

Jeff nodded and followed Matt and Tony down the porcelain white hallways of the hospital. Each wall seemed drearier and more sickness-inducing than the last, the sterile environment sucking the mood right out of his head. Various waiting rooms for different departments were littered with sombre or annoyed looking people, and with every step Jeff became more and more jittery. 

They finally arrived at the ER, having taken the long way around, and Matt pushed open the double doors to a ward. Most beds appeared to be empty or have the curtains fully drawn, bar one. Jeff could see Lainie through the gap in the drawn curtains, and made a beeline towards it, overtaking Matt and Tony.

He pushed gently through the curtains and Lainie turned to smile at him.

“Lovely to see you again, Jeff,” she said.

“You too, Mrs Jensen.”

Jeff turned to face Clay. He was sitting up in the bed, a gauze on his forehead. His cheeks were flushed pink and he looked a little tired, but otherwise perfectly fine. Jeff sat down in the chair beside him.

“How are you feeling?” He asked.

Clay shrugged. “Fine, I think. I don’t really remember what happened. Apparently, I passed out on the stairs.”

“The stairs?” Tony and Jeff exclaimed at the same time. “You are way too calm about his,” Tony continued.

“Is that a common theme with Clay and injuries?” Jeff asked Tony. 

“Yes.”

Clay’s parents sidled away, leaving the three alone. Jeff cleared his throat a little. “Well, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Tony snorted and finally sat down on an unused part of the bed. “You should have seen him today,” – he jerked a thumb at Jeff – “he looked like a lost puppy at lunch until I came along.” 

Jeff rolled his eyes. “My mom asked me three different times to update her about Clay, I was starting to get worried it was more serious than she was letting on, and then this idiot skips school with no contact for half a day!” He glared playfully at Clay who shrugged his shoulders innocently. 

“I was busy being passed out, don’t blame me.”

Tony reached over and smacked him lightly. He tapped on his bandaged arm. “So, is this and your forehead wound going to be a feature for the Winter Formal photos? You’re going?”

Clay nodded. “Yeah, Jeff and I are. And shut up, I pull off the injured look very well, thank you.”

Tony snorted. “There’s no way your mom is letting you near that bike again for months.”

Clay flopped down to lie against the pillows in defeat. “Yeah, I’ve got a month-long ban.”

Jeff reached out and patted his hand. “If you need a lift to school any day, I can pick you up,” he said. He ducked his head nervously at the happy smile Clay threw back and felt his cheeks flush slightly. It was a few moments before he realised that his hand was still on top of Clay’s and he blushed even deeper. 

“Thanks, Jeff. Looks like it’ll be you providing transport to the formal, anyway.”

Jeff laughed. “Something tells me that was a given anyway.” Just the image of Clay in a formal suit made him duck his head again, lips twitching upwards gently at the image of how handsome he would look.

“Hey, I could have been your prince charming on a bike!” Clay laughed.

Jeff opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by Tony clearing his throat. Jeff’s heart jumped to his throat once he realised that he’d been on the verge of blatantly trying to flirt in front of Tony. He lifted his hand from Clay’s and dropped it back to his side. Lainie and Matt entered almost immediately afterwards, a doctor following close behind.

“I’m afraid visiting hours are over for now,” he said, clutching a clipboard. “One parent may remain behind, but I have to ask everyone else to leave.”

Jeff nodded and rose from his seat and was about the leave when a hand caught his. He turned and found Clay holding his hand, grabbing his attention. 

“I’ll text. Don’t worry about me, okay?” He said seriously. 

Jeff nodded and felt a light squeeze before his hand was released and he stumbled his way out of the curtained bed. He waved vaguely to Clay and Matt before following Tony and Lainie out of the room. They made their way down the bleak corridors, the ghost of Clay’s hand still present on his hand. _Fuck,_ Jeff thought. _I am so fucked for Clay._

_So fucked._

-

“Jeff Atkins.”

Jeff winced and immediately gave up on trying to enter the house undetected. “Hey Mom…”

His Mom stood, arms crossed, and stared for a few moments before sighing, relaxing and shooing Jeff from the doorway. She followed him into the living room and busied herself with picking up some stray newspapers while Jeff toed off his sneakers and threw his jacket down.

“So, how is he?” She finally asked.

Jeff looked up and met her gaze. “Mostly fine. He passed out on the stairs-“

“The stairs?” She interrupted, faintly horrified.

“See, that was _my_ reaction, well, and Tony’s, and Clay seemed thoroughly unconcerned with it!” Jeff exclaimed. “That boy has no regard for personal safety.”

Mrs Atkins just shook her head and sat down beside Jeff, switching the TV on with the remote. “Your father and I aren’t particularly impressed with you skipping school, especially since you only just got back on the team again.”

Jeff ducked his head and sighed deeply. “I know, Mom. I’m sorry.”

She patted his shoulder. “You aren’t in trouble, but only because it was important, and you did text. Don’t be making a habit of it, okay, honey?” She smiled softly at him as a news show host muttered incomprehensibly in the background.

“I won’t, Mom.” Jeff sent one final smile to her before hauling himself upright and disappearing up the stairs. Behind him, unseen, Mrs Atkins shook her head fondly and dialled a phone number.

“Hi, Mrs Jensen? This is Aubrey Atkins, Jeff’s mom…”

-

Jeff flung himself, rather dramatically, onto his bed and lay silently for a few moments. He could feel his phone buzzing beside him as the team probably angrily interrogated him on why he’d skipped practice. ‘Not that I’m the one who needs the practice’ he thought bitterly.

With a small seed of dread blooming into a fully-fledged plant in his stomach, Jeff unlocked his phone and watched more texts flood in from a newly created group chat.

_Montgomery: What the hell, Atkins?  
Bryce: You could have at least told us if you weren’t going to show up._

He scrolled aimlessly through the series of messages. Yeah, he probably should’ve seen this one coming. 

_Jeff: sorry, guys. won’t happen again,_

He muted the conversation and went back to his conversations. Warily, he scrolled over the names of various team members who’d tried private message before resorting to a group chat. AT the bottom of the unread messages were two names he actually wanted to see: Tony and Clay.

He opened Tony’s message first, a simple thanks for coming and a note that he’d be taking Clay to and from school in the morning, at the request of Lainie.

 _Tony: It’s nothing personal, she just knows me and wants to be as careful as she can._  
Jeff: don’t worry, it’s cool.  
Jeff: 😊 

And then Clay:

_Clay: Thanks for coming with Tony.  
Clay: It gets awfully boring in the hospital. _

Jeff smiled. He didn’t know how it had happened, that he’d become so…enamoured, so quickly. He’d always found Clay nice, and relatively good looking (and, not that he’d ever admit it, he may have blurted to Justin once after a few drinks that he found Clay “so hot, it’s not fair Justin, why me?) but this level of sheer happiness to even get a text was nauseatingly sweet. 

_Jeff: it’s okay  
Jeff: i wanted to see you   
Jeff: you worried me  
Clay: [typing]  
Clay: I know, I’m sorry  
Clay: Call me? _

Jeff didn’t reply, simply selecting Clay’s contact and letting it ring on speaker.

“Hi, Jeff,” Clay’s voice said from the speaker. 

Jeff rolled onto his stomach and placed the phone on his pillow. “Hey. They let you go yet?”

“We’re leaving now, the doctor is just telling my mom to basically not let me do anything for the foreseeable future.” 

Jeff could almost hear the eye roll. “It’s for your own safety, you’re a walking hazard!”

Clay chucked lightly and said something muffled to someone off-speaker, before his voice came back, sounding apologetic. “They want me to talk to the doctor. Talk later?”

“Talk later,” Jeff confirmed.

The call cut off abruptly and he let himself flop down onto his bed fully. He could hear his mom doing something downstairs, and the tell-tale creak of the front door signalling that his dad had arrived home. Jeff pulled himself up and padded downstairs to say hi.

His dad was standing at the kitchen counter. His mom was holding two different plates to his face and seemingly asking which he preferred. Jeff paused in the doorway, confused. “Hey, dad”, he said.

“Hello, son,” he replied. “Blue, Aubrey.”

Seemingly placated, Aubrey nodded and gathered a sat of blue crockery and set it down beside the stove, which had a pot of…something, bubbling away. She turned to face Jeff, looking him up and down.

“Honey, put a clean shirt on, we’re having the Jensen’s over for dinner.” 

Jeff blinked. “We’re…what? What’s wrong with my shirt?”

Aubrey put down a basket of herbs and moved closer to the kitchen counter to slap a tomato from Thomas Atkin’s hand. “I wanted to meet the boy that my son is skipping school for, and the one who helped my baby get back on the team,” she said, as if it were obvious. “So, I invited him and his parents, since I thought he might feel awkward coming alone.”

“Right,” Jeff said. “But what’s wrong with my shirt?” 

His mom picked up the herbs again. “You were wearing it yesterday, and it has sweat stains. I’d like to make a good impression.”

Jeff turned to leave the kitchen, pulling his shirt off as he ascended the stairs. He threw the shirt into the laundry basket and opened his drawer, stopping to contemplate. He wanted to look good for Clay, and he’d seen Clay staring at his arms before (he was not subtle, Clay so obviously had a thing for arms that it was almost laughable he tried to hide it).

“This should work,” he mumbled to himself, picking up a dark grey top that was _technically_ a size too small.

Perfect.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. I have no excuse. Hope you enjoy, let me know what you want to see next! 
> 
> And point out any typos. I’ve checked through, but sometimes I miss them.

Clay knocked his head back against a wall and waited for his dad to be done talking to the doctor. He’d blown off a phone call with Jeff just to be told that he wasn’t to ride his bike and that he was to get plenty of rest and other things he’d heard about a thousand times before from just about every adult that came to visit him. The bandage on his arm was wrapped way too tightly and his skin was itching; it had taken a threat of an extra month on his bike ban to get him to leave it alone.

Clay watched as his Dad nodded and finally stepped away to collect him.

“Let’s go,” he said. “We have to be at the Atkins’ by 5.”

Clay startled and followed behind him. “What? Why?” He dodged a few people and tried to catch up with his Dad who was already paces ahead. The hospital was too busy and every time he almost caught up another person would slow him down or try to squeeze between them.

They slid through the ER doors separately and eventually gravitated back side-by-side as they walked to the car.

“Why are we going to Jeff’s house?” He asked again.

His dad glanced at him. “His mom called Lainie and invited us for dinner.” He turned to face the sidewalk and narrowly missed walking into a wheelchair-bound patient, instead turning and crossing the road to reach where the car was parked.

Clay paused outside the car door. “Why?” 

His dad gestured for him to sit down. “Your mom didn’t say. What’s the problem?” He started the car and stared at Clay until he fastened his seatbelt.

“No problem,” Clay said as they turned out of the hospital parking lot and merged with the end-of-school-and-work traffic. Instead of sitting in silence, Clay puled his phone out and opened his conversation with Jeff. 

_Clay: Any idea why we’re coming to your house for dinner?_  
Jeff: mom wants to meet u and thought you would prefer it if ur parents came too  
Jeff: sorry, i didn’t know either until just now  
Clay: It’s fine Jeff, don’t worry 

He turned his phone off and ignored the replying buzz in favour of leaning his head against the car window and uninterestedly watching the world blur by. It was only as his eyes began to close that he realised just how tired he was.

-

Clay woke with a start at the slam of a car door and blink blearily. He unbuckled his seatbelt and pushed open the car door only to immediately be gently pushed towards the back door of the car.

“We’re going now, Clay. You get in the back,” his mom said. She was holding a bunch of flowers in one arm and gesturing with the other. Clay climbed in and sat down, waiting impatiently until his parents did the same. 

“Why do you have flowers?” He asked. 

Laine looked at him through the mirror. “To give to Aubrey, of course, as a thank you for checking up on you when you refused the hospital.” 

Clay shrunk down in his seat slightly. “I didn’t know I was going to faint,” he mumbled.

Lainie huffed sharply. “Well, let this be a lesson to you.”

Clay fell silent and watched as his mom messed with her hair and his dad double checked his pockets before starting the car. A pit in his stomach told him that this was probably going to be an incredible awkward dinner and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

-

They pulled up outside Jeff’s house and parked next to his beauty of a car. Clay’s lips twitched as he recalled the first time he went in the car, just a few days prior. As he made his way out of the car and up the steps to the front door, he could hear vague chattering coming from a cracked open front room window. Through the crack in the blinds Clay saw Jeff pass by and hand something to Mrs Atkins. 

He knocked on the door. There was a sudden flurry of footsteps and a few seconds later the door swung open to show Mr Atkins at the door. Clay smiled politely and stepped inside, leaving the adults at the door to introduce themselves. 

“Hi Mrs Atkins,” Clay said as he walked into the living room. He was stood at the kitchen counter with a stack of plates, looking a little stressed. 

“Clay!” She said. “Hi! How are you doing?” She wiped her hands down on a towel and gave him a quick hug.

“Uh, I’m fine, thanks.” 

“I’m glad to hear it, I’ll just go say hi to your parents, you sit with Jeff over there.” She gestured to the sofa before scurrying out of the room.

Jeff was sitting on the sofa looking a little bemused. He was wearing one of his signature grey, ¾ sleeved tops, except this one was tighter than usual. Clay tore his eyes away to look at Jeff’s face. 

“Hi,” he said as he moved to sit beside him. 

“Hey,” Jeff said. “Sorry about her.”

Clay barked out a laugh. “It’s fine. I can’t believe they planned this behind our backs, though.”

Jeff smiled and if Clay hadn’t been hyperaware of his every move, he probably wouldn’t have noticed how he moved imperceptibly closer. “My mom’s never done this before, but I’m not exactly surprised. She’s probably what you’d call a ‘social butterfly’.

Clay relaxed into the sofa slightly. “Yeah, I get that.” They sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments before footsteps began to pad into the front room. Mrs Atkins came first, holding the bouquet and heading to the kitchen, presumably for a vase. His mom followed her, probably for lack of things to do, and the men sat down on the opposite sofa. 

“So, Clay,” his dad began. “Harris here tells me that’s it’s thanks to you Jeff go back on the baseball team.” 

Clay startled. “Well…I – I mean not really,” he stuttered. “Jeff put the work in and got himself the B.”

“But you tutored him to it.”

“I suppose so, yes,” Clay said. He risked a look towards Jeff and saw him trying to hide a grin at Clay’s obvious discomfort. He willed down the urge to throw him a middle finger.

“It’s nice to see Jeff have a more sensible friend,” Harris said to Matthew but not at all quietly. 

Jeff bent close to him and whispered, “You? Sensible?”

That time Clay did throw him the middle finger, but subtly.

Matthew nodded in agreement. “The only other friends of Clay’s we’ve met recently are Hannah and Tony.”

Clay began to slide down the sofa in embarrassment. Across the kitchen, his mom and Jeff’s mom were chatting quietly over the vase of flowers. He felt the weight on the sofa lift and then Jeff was in front of him, standing. 

“Wanna come up to my room while we wait?”

Clay nodded and stood up awkwardly. “Yeah, sure.”

Jeff’s mom tore herself away from her conversation for a moment, “we’ll call you when dinner is ready, honey.”

Jeff nodded and pulled Clay out of the room by his arm. “I am terrified of what stories they’re planning on bringing up over dinner,” he said as they jogged up the stairs and into Jeff’s bedroom. 

Clay collapsed on his bed. “I didn’t even think about that.” 

Jeff nudged Clay to the side and sat down beside him so that they were side by side. From his pocket Clay could hear his phone buzz incessantly. He turned to face Jeff and raised an eyebrow.

“Are you planning on checking that?” He asked.

Jeff grimaced. “It’s the team. They’re mad I skipped today.” He dishes his phone from his pocket and scrolled down the texts. 

“Sorry you got in trouble with them for me,” Clay said, peering over his shoulder at the phone screen.

“Nah, don’t worry about it,” Jeff said, turning to face Clay so that their faces were mere inches apart. They stayed for s few seconds before Jeff cleared his throat and turned back. Clay willed down the pang of disappointment.

“Justin wants to know if you’re okay,” Jeff piped up.

“Justin?” Clay asked. He sat up and leaned against the wall. “Why does he want to know?”

Jeff shrugged and began to type. “Beats me. He probably heard Tony telling me you were in the hospital.”

“The last thing I want is for the baseball team to start showing me attention”. Clay shuddered.

Jeff smirked at him from over his shoulder. “You don’t want me showing you attention?” He asked.

Clay opened his mouth only to click it shut immediately after. He glared at Jeff. “I like you. There’s a difference.”

Jeff put his phone down and shifted so that he was lying down. “They aren’t all that bad. 

Clay hummed in response. “I suppose they can’t all be as unlikeable as Bryce.” 

“Now that’s fair enough,” Jeff said, smiling. He looked towards Clay. “Speaking of, when are you going to properly introduce me to Hannah?”

Clay slid down to lie beside Jeff. “Whenever you want, I suppose. We could go to Monet’s with her soon.”

“I’d like that,” Jeff said. Clay could feel his gaze burning into him and felt his face warm slightly.

Almost inaudibly, Jeff continued: “I like _you_.” 

Clay turned to face Jeff. Laying side by side their faces were once again inches from each other. 

“Yeah?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Jeff said through a smile. “How could I not?” 

They lay silently for a minute until Clay saw Jeff’s gaze flicker to his lips and then back up again. His face then flushed, seemingly embarrassed about being caught. 

Clay steeled himself and shifted closer so that their noses were almost touching. He rested his hand on Jeff’s waist, and waited.

Jeff’s eyes flicked down again before he took a breath and moved even closer.

Clay shut his eyes and felt the soft pressure of Jeff’s lips on his. He opened his mouth slightly and felt Jeff do the same until they were kissing properly, Jeff’s free hand coming up to hold Clay’s face. 

Clay let his fingertips slide slightly under the bottom of Jeff’s shirt and he felt Jeff smile into the kiss. Feeling bold, Clay let his hand trail up further until his palm was flat against’s Jeff’s back. 

Emboldened, Jeff pulled his other arm up to lightly grasp Clay’s hair. 

“Jeff! Clay!” A voice called from downstairs. “Come down for dinner!”

They broke apart, both grinning. Clay pulled his hand back and darted forward to peck Jeff on the lips once more before sitting up. 

“Come on,” Jeff said, also sitting up. “Let’s go.”

-

Clay sat at the end of the table opposite Jeff. In the time they’d been upstairs their parents had apparently become best friends. 

“So Clay,” Mrs Atkins said over her plate of pasta. “What do you like to do?”

Clay almost choked in his haste to swallow the mouthful of spaghetti he had. “Um…I like riding my bike. And going to see films. 

“Play any sports?” Jeff’s dad asked. 

“No,” Clay said. “I’m not a sporty person, really.” 

Harris Atkins laughed. “Maybe Jeff here can tutor you then!” He clapped Jeff on the back and Jeff sent a tight smile back. 

“Clay’s never been very sporty,” Lainie chipped in. “But with how much he gets injured, that’s probably a good thing.”

The adults shared a laugh while Clay and Jeff met eyes from across the table and grimaced. 

-

“It was lovely to meet you both,” Mrs Atkins said to Clay’s parents. 

“And you,” Matthew replied. “It was good to see you again, Jeff.”

“Yes, lovely to properly meet you, Clay,” Mrs Atkins continued. 

Clay smirked at them both and slides away towards Jeff to let them say their goodbyes. 

“Hey,” he said as he approached.

“Hey,” Jeff replied. “Do you want a lift to school tomorrow?”

Clay nodded. “Yeah, sounds good. Uh, text me?” He replies when he saw his parents waving for him. 

“Sure,” Jeff said.

Clay turned and made his way to leave before Jeff grabbed him by the sleeve.

“Wait!”

Clay turned to face him. 

“About earlier,” Jeff said, sounding awkward. “Was it…it wasn’t a one time thing, was it?”

Clay smiled gently. “Not for me. Was it for you?”

Jeff’s unsure expression grew into a smile, too. “No, definitely not. See you tomorrow.”

Clay turned to leave, waving over his shoulder.

He couldn’t wait. 

*


End file.
